'ME labor laws don't protect Pinoy maids from abuse'

MANILA, Philippines - Filipino domestic helpers are widely abused in Middle East countries because they are not covered by labor laws in these nations, a labor attaché said recently.

Philippine Labor Attaché to Qatar Arturo Sodusta said Middle East countries such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have labor laws which give protection and incentives to Filipino expatriates but not to domestic helpers.

Sodusta said this problem of the lack of labor laws for Filipino domestic helpers in the Middle East has become a contributing factor to the increasing incidence of abuse.

In spite of this, many Filipinos still aspire to become domestic helpers because they dream of a decent salary to raise their families from poverty.

Sodusta said the hike in the number of Filipino workers being abused by their employers in Middle East countries can also be attributed to the unabated operation of human trafficking syndicates which connive with illegal recruitment agencies that are sending Filipino workers abroad using fake passports and work contracts.

Sodusta was among the government officials in Qatar whom Senate President Pro-Tempore Jinggoy Estrada, chairman of the Senate committee on labor, met during his visit to Qatar from June 9 to 12.

Estrada also had a meeting with the Filipino community to personally check on their problems.

The senator was informed by Sodusta that the number of runaway domestic helpers in Qatar that were so far accounted for by the Philippine embassy has increased from 18 to 20.

He was likewise informed about the increasing number of the so-called “love cases” or illicit love affairs between Filipino workers and sometimes between Filipinos and foreign nationals.

Public display of affection between a man and woman who are not married is strictly prohibited in Qatar and other Middle East countries and those found guilty of this violation are immediately brought to court and imprisoned.

The same strict code of conduct applies to unmarried women who get pregnant. The suspect is immediately imprisoned.

Sodusta said on average, the Philippine embassy receives four love cases each month, specifically Filipina workers who end up being impregnated by their lovers and boyfriends.

Safe destination

Meantime, more countries are expected to qualify as “safe destination” for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) chief Carlos Cao Jr. said the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) will soon submit the list of additional countries certified to hire OFWs.

Cao said Congress has given DFA until July 25 to come out with the complete list of certified countries. The list would be submitted to POEA for assessment and approval.

“We hope the (POEA) governing board will be able to approve these certifications by the end of the year,” he added.

Cao also expressed confidence that POEA would be able to approve the certification for some countries in the Middle East, particularly Iraq and Afghanistan.

The two countries are set to terminate workers from countries with existing deployment ban.

Under the Amended Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipino Act of 1995 or Republic Act 10022, the DFA is required to assess if the destination countries for OFWs have laws protecting the rights of the workers or are signatory to multilateral conventions regarding such rights.

The country is prohibited from deploying Filipino workers to countries that fail to comply with the requirements.

Earlier, the POEA released the list of the first 76 countries which have legal protection and policies protecting OFWs.

Close to 200 countries are currently employing OFWs.

Frantic messages

As this developed, the Blas F. Ople Policy Center, a non-profit organization that assists distressed OFWs, reported that they have been receiving frantic messages over possible mass displacement of Filipino workers in Saudi Arabia with the implementation of the Saudization program.

“Much of the anxiety comes from the recent move of the Saudi government to announce Sept. 10 as the deadline for all Saudi firms to comply with the Nitaqat system or requirement to hire more Saudi nationals,” the center said in a statement.

Labor Undersecretary Danilo Cruz, however, discounted the possibility of mass termination of OFWs and assured workers that the government is ready to provide help to those who will be affected by the ruling. – With Mayen Jaymalin